


Sunshine and Starlight

by MsSqueena



Category: Team Fortress 2
Genre: Blood and Violence, Eventual Romance, F/M, Man Hunter, One-Sided Attraction, Original Character(s), Past Relationship(s), Platypuses, Slow Burn, Team Bonding, Tenth Class (Team Fortress 2)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-18
Updated: 2020-06-10
Packaged: 2021-02-27 23:14:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,147
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22753810
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MsSqueena/pseuds/MsSqueena
Summary: Since the day they arrived, all of them had a faint Idea that there was a 10th class if that labeled door at the end of the hall said anything at all. A year later, the news finally arrived that they were coming. Everyone has their own ideas and thoughts of who or what type of person it would be, however none of them were quite expecting this.Romance story, unknown shipping at the moment. ???/10th Class
Comments: 6
Kudos: 12





	1. Passengers

“ _ Dama,  _ let’s get something straight. They already started a year ago… without me?”

“Yes. As much as I hate to say it, we couldn’t wait for you. That doesn’t mean we haven’t been searching though. It was actually quite hard to find you… but at least you’re here now, right?”

“ _ Si, esa es la parte más importante… pero, Dama,  _ what on earth does that mean for me?”

Miss Pauling was silent for a moment, contemplating the words her companion had just said. Her eyes were focused on the road as she gripped the steering wheel a bit tighter, shuffling her free foot ever so. The ground was bumpy, rough, and ragged, but it helped them. It was a familiar roughness from a hard day of work, and it was only natural to their passengers on board. 

She dared a quick glance to the passenger, seeing their elbow raised as their chin rested upon their palm as the arm rested on the window sill. Their jaw slowly moved as a far off look glazed over their eyes as they looked at the road before them, an apple in hand. 

“You know,” they began to say, straightening themselves out from their previously slouched position, “I shouldn’t have expected it to wait just for me, but…  _ Dama _ , you understand when I say it simply doesn’t feel like it’s been a year.” The red fruit touched their lips again as they took another large bite from the sweet fruit, “It was as if it was only yesterday when you came around asking us… but it also felt like an eternity the moment I saw you again, after all this time.” 

Miss Pauling frowned a bit, their eyes glancing over towards the passenger who looked like they were in a daze. Their lips were sealed shut, a sound rumbling at the back of their throat, but no matter how many times they parted their lips to let the words slip out, it wouldn't come. 

“Do-”

[??? Noises]

A sigh was the only thing that escaped her as the sound came from the passenger side towards the bundle in their arms. The Passenger let a snort escape them as they laughed. 

“ _ Dios mio,  _ didn’t I tell you to be quiet Batatas?”

The sound that came from the cold bundle in her arms squeaked louder as the bill came forwards only for her to reach her hand in the pocket and begin to pet the softness of their being. “Well,” she began to say, “Why did you name him Batatas?” Miss Pauling asked as she listened to the gurgling sound escaping from their side. 

“When I came home for the first time in over a year, I had discovered that Monna had laid a clutch. There were two of them, a boy and a girl. I went to fetch some yams and found this  _ cabrón  _ in the crate. He had sat there comfortably as well as sat in the bucket of drinking water we have in the kitchen. Thus, he was named Batatas. Rosita on the other hand was smart. She liked the plants in the garden and she loved the cool water of the pond. Unlike this idiot.”

Batatas rumbles even louder.

“ _ Maldito cabrón. _ ” 

She chuckled lightly at that, remember meeting the grouchy creature as his paw came out to grab her own hand, plopping it on his head demanding pets. The passenger lifted up the bundle looking directly at the little beady eyes that escaped the dark void. 

“We should be there within a matter of minutes… ready to say hi to your new team?”

The Passenger lowered the bundle, it’s hands grazing the fur of it as it rumbled subsided lightly. They pursued their lips, their eyes slightly downcasted as they sighed. A soft chuckling escaped their parched lips. 

“ _De ningun modo, Dama,_ but... I feel like it’s gonna be quite an adjustment for these men” 

With a burst of air escaping their lips they then turned to look at Miss Pauling. 

“ _ Dama _ , what I’m more concerned about is how soon. This  _ idiota _ needs some water.” 

Within a matter of minutes, the truck was pulled somewhat to the side and stopped, the engine cut off as a sigh escaped Miss Pauling's lips. “This is it. We walk the rest of the way to base from here.” 

The passenger hummed as they hugged the bundle closer to them. With a quick swish of their hands and a forceful pull to the door, it swung open with a creak and from there they took careful steps to the uneven ground below. They stumbled a bit at first, not wearing the proper shoes for the condition, however they adjusted quickly with a few stops. With a light hush to the bundle in their arms, they reached towards the back where she Miss Pauling was struggling to grab the suitcase. 

They cleared their throat lightly, reaching over to pull the suitcase out themselves and with a light strain from their arm, the passenger easily pulled it out and placed it on the ground, eagerly nodding towards them with a smile. Miss Pauling smiled back a bit, climbing down again as they straightened out their clothing and the clipboard in hand. 

The Passenger placed their sunglasses over their eyes as the wide straw hat was loveling tilted on their head again to deter the sun. With a quick nodded, they lifted up the suitcase again and they were off. 

“It shouldn’t be too long from here.” Miss Pauling called out as she led the way. The Passenger hummed at that, “Hopefully so, this little idiot is burning up. Though, sorry if I do sound too rushed, Batatas is getting a little rowdy.” Miss Pauling smiled at that. “I can imagine, we are in the middle of a desert after all.” 

“ _ Dama,  _ it just means we’re gonna have to walk a little bit faster.”

Within no time however, they could see the building over the ridge and with careful steps, they reached the concrete steps up to the entrance and with a sigh of relief, they both entered quickly after Miss Pauling unlocked the door. There, the Passenger looked over the insides of the hall. Their eyes bathed to the off white walls, to the cream and red tiles on the bottom. Everything was accented in a sort of crimson and red. 

“Reliable Excavation Demolition… or RED…quite literally.” 

They let a low whistle out as they hugged the bundle. Looking down, the rumbling from the bundle was a soft hum of content, after all these concrete walls were much cooler than outside. But sadly they were not cool enough. The Passenger dropped their suitcase for a second, reaching towards the bundle till they heard Miss Pauling’s light curse on her breath. 

“We took a little longer than expected… well, I’ll show you right to your room and then we can meet the rest of your team.” 

With that, the passenger quickly snatched up their suitcase and walked closely behind Miss Pauling, their steps clicking as they went. With tentative steps, they met the long hallway where most of the rooms were. Many of them had emblems posted by the door, each corresponding to a different class. There, down the hall however, different to the rest of the rooms, was a door with two labels, a brown bar to where the tags were placed. The top one was missing, a dusted dark brown wood below as on the bottom was another emblem. 

Miss Pauling walked to the door, pulling out a set of keys as she proceeded to unlock the door. The Passenger walked forwards, gloved hands grazing the label staring back at them with a soft humm and a far off look in their eyes. 

Miss Pauling cleared her throat, catching their attention as they blinked, turning to the taller individual. “These will be your keys to your room, and the other to the building.” They stated as they dropped the keys into their open hand and with a smile, they pulled the door open, letting the new member in.

Walking inside, they looked directly across from them. The far wall had a bookshelf against the right hand side corner with a chest besides that and a nightstand against the left most corner. Besides the nightstand was a Queen sized bed, the sheets bathed in red with dust collecting on top of it if the particles in the light said anything. Right Besides that, tightly put, was the dresser with a mirror on top of it. In the Center of the room a large crate with the rest of their items. 

Miss Pauling walked it, brushing a hand over the dresser as the dust coated it. 

“I’m sorry it’s so dusty, if I knew…”

The Passenger smiled, placing the suitcase on the floor by the bed as they placed the bundle on the bed unravelling it as they went. 

“You didn’t know, I didn’t know...things happen Miss Pauling.”removing the glove on her left hand, she lifted it to pet the creature as it emerged from the grey jacket. 

“And that’s okay.”

There, a little platypus began to rumble in his unusual quake, yipping in happiness as it ran in a circle on the bed, plopping on it’s back. The Passenger smiled again as a hand rose to their lips. 

“It’s time to get you some water, isn’t that right Batatas?”


	2. Meet The Hunter

“God!” what’s taking them so long?” Scout cried out in annoyance as he slammed his hands against the table. Spy, who was seated away on one of the courches in the common area removed the cigarette from their lips as he blew out a stream of smoke, “Need I remind you that it’s quite a long trip from here to town? Miss Pauling said they would be here at 1 sharp and it’s only been about 10 minutes passed. Knowing her, they are either here or just arrived.” He reasoned. 

For the first time in a long while the whole team was there, all seated around as they waited for their newest member. Many of them were feeling a broad spectrum of different emotions, jittering about, for the newest class. Every single one of them had a different impression of who’d they’ll be judging on the state of their crate.

They found random items in that box, but there was hardly any clothing in there to judge. The box was rather bland as they shifted through the top of it. Poorly made candles, books, and random fabrics that were coarsely cut on the edges. There was a box of beads and yarn. Scout even pulled out a decent sized wooden cross out of the box. The rest were in safe boxed below, unable to be seen as they quickly examined the carefully sealed crate. 

It left most of them to talk, whisper, and imagine what type of mercenary this would be. 

From the first day each and every one of them started this job for RED, they were aware of the 10th, empty room that had always lingered at the end of the hall. Unlike all the other doors down the hall, this one had two slots on it for class slots. Originally, the Heavy’s emblem was on top of the door, however Miss Pauling had quickly plucked it off from day one and moved it to the other vacant room towards the side. After that, the Spy’s emblem was left and was quickly moved as well. From there, Miss Pauling had pulled out a new slip from her clipboard. With careful hands, she slipped it into the slot and softly grazed her hands over it, only to quickly turn away and look at all of them again. All that was left was the last emblem she left hanging on the door for more than a year later. 

A skull and crossbones. 

It was odd to see at first. With a symbol that means danger, it left a curious ebb in all of them. Scout had joked that maybe a pirate would be joining their crew, however Miss Pauling wasn’t as adamant as he was to hear him joking about it, or anyone for that matter. That impression left a lasting mark on them, this curiosity that would spike as the year went on. It had died down as the years progressed but sometimes it would linger up again. When Miss Pauling had mentioned the arrival of the 10th class again, everyone turned towards the empty room. 

Medic had reasoned that the skull and crossbones were used as a symbol for danger or as a label for anything poisonous to the human body, and thus the 10th class was most likely someone who had to deal with dangerous chemicals. A chemist as he put it, and hopefully someone who could match his intellect. Sniper reasoned that perhaps it was a powerhouse like heavy, a bulk, close ranged combaten able to beat the crude out of anyone and anything. It had to be a dangerous class with a mark like that. 

Spy had simply stood at the back of the group for that announcement, a hand resting under his chin as his eyes darted at the blankness of everything, considering about every option there could be. Miss Pauling had told him specifically that he could not look into the background of the 10th hunter, however that was at the beginning when they had all initially joined. A year later, there wasn’t a single warning not to do it and his curiosity was growing. There was a burning sense that he needed to know about everything. 

As a man skilled in Espionage and having lived most of his life in such a condition, he imagined that it wouldn’t have been too difficult to find information on this new individual. In a way, he understood what Miss Pauling meant when she said not to look at their backstory as the days kept on passing by. As much as he tried, he could hardly find anything at all. If anything, he had more questions than answers over who this class was. There were only rumors, tales that lead to dead ends and ones that looped back to the start. The farthest back he could even trace was from 14 years back when the tracks burn into the ground with nothing past it. It was frustrating, but intriguing all the same. Spy was left with only the assumption he’s managed to collect, bits and pieces he could only imagine and wait to fill out himself. However there was one thing he knew, and that was their title. 

Manhunter. 

Everyone had a set impression of what they thought the 10th class would be, and that was that. 

Now, there they all were, sitting within the common area as the men played card games at the tables, other reading and writing, doing work that needed to be attended to. Spy even slightly impressed by Medic’s curiosity. The usual hermit had sat himself at one of the barstools with files upon files of papers, furiously scribbling things down as he worked, attempting to drown out the sounds from the rowdy bunch. Archimedes was persistently sitting by his side, nibbling on the papers left discarded to the side. 

The dining table was covered in cards, chips, booze bottles, and cans of Bonk. Scout, Demoman, and Soldier were all crying, playing a couple game of cards as they were the loudest and rowdiest of the bunch. Sniper was left to his own device in the corner of the room. His legs were propped up on a table as a bottle of chilled beer sat beside him. His hand rested on his rifle as he smoothed it over with a rag, cleaning it as he looked out, pensive. Engineer was in the kitchen, cooking up a storm for lunch and for the newest member and Spy had no doubt he would cook even more than usual. Pryo was there, seated at one the table indies of the kitchen mumbling here and there his muffled demands as he swung his legs from the chairs. Heavy and Spy across from one another as they each held their respective books as they read but Spy knew that everyone, one way or another, was too distracted to focus. 

The clock ticked in the background, haunting each and every one of them as they waited anxiously. 

The door creaked open suddenly. All eyes turned to look at the person entering only for hums of slight disappointment to resound. Miss Pauling cleared her throat as she looked at all of them, attentive eyes all on her. She paused as she heard a noise emanating from the kitchen as the two others there stumbled out, wondering why all the loud yelling suddenly disappeared. 

“Gentlemen”, Miss Pauling began to say, straightening out. “As you are all aware, you have a new Teammate. I know that many of you have probably seen her emblem around before you even knew about the 10th class, but it’s finally happening now. Due to the year in between initial recruitment, she will have to be evaluated once again. if all goes well, she will be joining you all permanently.” 

She looked at the clock on the wall again and pursed her lips. “I will have to go, but I want all of you to behave and be nice to her. She will be working with you all and I hope you can respect one another. Their class is the Hunter, and they are currently in the shower and will be with you all shortly. I need to leave now but if you have any questions, ask Hunter, she’s been briefed on most of it already and can probably answer most of your questions.”

With that she turned on her heels and walked towards the door, opening it as she turned towards them once more. “Goodbye Gentlemen, I’ll see you all another time.” and with that she was gone as the echo of her heels silently went off down the hall. A silence filled the room for a moment as all eyes turned to look at each other. 

“THE 10TH CLASS IS A GIRL!”

Soldier shot up, the table shaking as his knees hit the table, leaning forwards over the cards and chips. “You're concerned about that?” Scout called out, rushing up, “There is currently a NAKED girl in OUR showers. I don’t know about you, but I wanna see that.” With that, he was darting for the door. Demoman laughed, taking a large swig of his booze as he sighed satisfactions, “Lad, wait for me!” and thus he started following after them. The rest of the men proceeded to get up as they followed after the two. 

“Give girl privacy!” Heavy called out as he shut his book and rushed after them. “A bunch of perverts.” Spy cursed out under his breath as he began to walk with the group as well. Engineer grabbed his hardhat and ran back into the kitchen to shut everything off as Pyro looked around at the group and began to skip towards them too. “Wait for me!” Engineer called out as he ran out. 

And down the hall every single one of them went. 

* * *

“ _Batatas! Cabrón, podrías dejar de moverte por un segundo?_ ”

She laughed as she hugged the squirming bundle to her chest, holding a pail to her side as she hummed. Miss Pauling smiled at that, looking at the pair as she walked beside her. 

“Are the showers also contaminated?” she asked with mild curiosity as they walked towards the showers. “We recently put in a couple new pipes and changed things around a bit once they burst. They should, in theory, be good. I suggest using your filter however. Bottled waters however are always accessible since there’s lead in practically everything.” Hunter frowned a bit at that, but nodded. 

“At least I can give this guy a bath to clean him up.”

they arrived at the shower doors where Hunter paused, turning to Miss Pauling. “I hope I’m not keeping you too long _Dama_.” she stated as the younger woman shook her head. “Not at all. You’ve been debriefed on everything so you should be able to handle introductions on your own, right?” Hunter nodded, “Of course. You can count on me for that, _Dama_.” Miss Pauling looked at her watch again and hummed. 

“They should be in the dining area. It shouldn’t be hard to find since that’s where all the noise is coming from. I’ll inform them that you're here and you’ll see them in a bit. Need anything, you know where the phone is but again…”

“Use it only for emergencies since you are such a busy woman. Admirably so.” 

Miss Pauling flushed a bit at that and shook her head, “I would agree if it wasn’t so… taxing.” she stated with a grin and walked off to do just that. “Take care Hunter!” And then the other woman smiled broadly. “ _Hasta luego!_ ” and with that, Hunter was alone. She sighed looking after Miss Pauling who quickly walked down the hall towards the others. 

She would be lying if she said she wasn't a bit nervous. Having been away from people for so long, it felt odd to be thrusted in such an environment like this, but to have a piece of mind and consider everything over, she enjoyed the idea that the young woman allowed her to take a break on her own to think about the introduction she would have to do. 

With heavy clicks of her ebony heels, she walked towards the door to the bathroom and pushed it open. Hunter was welcomed to the sight of the bathroom, being smaller than she really imagined it to be, but to be honest, she wasn’t expecting much. There five stalls against the left side of the wall, large enough with curtains covering each and everyone and from the look of it from the outside, they looked decently sized, if not large compared to her. On the right side of the wall, there were five sinks, all aligned besides one another as a large, long stretching mirror covered the side completely. 

She simply sighed in relief when she realized there were stalls to begin with. The thing she was fearful was, was the fact the showers would all be opened, with simple shower heads on top side by side without any form of privacy in between. 

All the curtain to the stalls were opened and with careful steps, holding the pail in her left hand and the platypus in her other arm, she slowly strutted by, looking inside each and everyone. Once she had inspected all of them, she picked the cleanest one. She removed her heels and placed them by the sides of the stall. The pail was also put down as Batatas was carefully placed inside. He squeaked lightly, his little tail tapping against the metallic material in a beat as he stood on his hind legs, looking up at her, rumbling. 

She grabbed the edges of her skirt crimson skirt and crumpled it up in her right hand as she took one step inside, reaching for the head as she turned it away towards the opposite wall. Then, she turned the nozzle on and reached her hand towards the spray, feeling the mist cast over her dress, and the warm water turning colder the longer she held it at the end. She smiled slightly at that and stood back turning to the bucket where the platypus eagerly rumbled and whined. Scooping him up she placed him inside and grabbed the homemade soap like mixture she had for him. She placed the little balled up mess to the side and leaned down towards him, seeing the little guy roll over as he did. 

She began to laugh as she looked at the happy boy. His hind leg lifted up to scratch his behind as he rolled his front torso over to the side as he squeaked in joy. She lowered her hand and began to pet the top of him as he whined in joy. 

“Water must be nice after such a long, and dry trip.” 

Her eyes darted towards the dirty water coming off of him and frowned.

“Now to clean you up _cabrón_.”

And with that she began to rub his smooth, brown body as he twisted and turned. The dark brown brushing off of him as she did. Grabbing a little bit of the ball, she rubbed a very small amount into her palms and brushed over him. She needed to get him as clean as he could be with all the desert air clinging onto his skin, and the cool the little idiot down. 

She was so entranced by cleaning Batatas up that she almost didn’t hear the door to the showers open.

Almost.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys are enjoying the story so far. TBH, as much as I wanted to write this, it’s always harder to think of a beginning than it is to get the middle and the end. You already have an idea of interactions, or how these relationships are but it’s a matter of developing and actually creating them that has always seemed challenging. 
> 
> There are two things I would like to note for this chapter and for ones to come that I hope you call can consider:
> 
> Batatas is a Platypus and I only did research on one specific area of the Platypus which you guys will find later. As a result, I will most likely, if anything, get some things wrong when writing to him. For example, he is getting cleaned this chapter however there is encouragement of little soap, and better yet homemade soap, due to the fact that some animals shouldn’t be washed with it. Some hold natural oils that protect them, and there are other factors to washing a creature. So platypus facts may be inaccurate, however I want his waddle and movement to be.
> 
> The second thing is language. I know how to talk in Spanish mildly. I used to be very good at Spanish before I moved to college where I haven’t found myself around others who also speak it so my Spanish is rather lacking than before when I was more or less fluent. Without practice, you can tend to lose that ability. Thus most of Spanish, or most of all the languages I do are going to be through some sort of translator. I will use some Google Translate, however I’m gonna also use some random websites. Google Translate is the most readily available, however form experience, it’s horrid to use and not very accurate at all. For example, when Yams was put into the translator, I got Batatas which I never heard before in my life. I always knew yams, or rather sweet potatoes, as camote but at the same time, this is also how I learned that Batatas are white sweet potatoes. You learn something new everyday it seems. 
> 
> I hope you guys are liking the story so far, and hopefully I will continue to update regularly. Comments and other things are what encourages me to write and I am so happy when you do. So thank you so much. I appreciate you and hope you have a good day.


	3. Buenos Días Caballeros

Hunter heard the creaking of the door through the harsh pounding of water against the walls. Though Batatas didn’t pay much attention to anything, Hunter always did. Her eyes hardened, narrowed, as a hand rested upon her leg, softly grazing higher as it went to her outer thigh where a dagger was carefully placed. 

She was supposed to meet the mercenaries in the dining area. She was supposed to go to them, not the other way around. That was the point, the idea at least. But here in this room the sound of the door swinging open was so evident and clear, and she didn’t like it at all. Her thoughts were racing, her body rigid as her eyes began to dart about as her fingers wrapped around the hilt. The blade began to hiss as it left’s it’s sheath, too stiff and direct. 

“You! Lady-”

That dagger embedded itself into the door frame, right beside Scout’s head as he fully entered. He screamed as he slipped onto the cold tiled floor as his arms scrambled to lift him up again. He looked up to the woman who proceeded to stand up before him, looking right at him as those piercing eyes lowered to his form below. 

“What’s wrong now Laddie-”

Demo burst through the door, arms raised with a bottle of booze in one hand and a fist raised in the other at the cry. His one eye darted around the room, till eventually they landed on her, his body frigid and frozen in place. 

“Well I’ll be…”

She slipped her heels back onto her feet with ease as a swagger mixed into her step, swaying towards the pair by the door. Her body was lightly soaked from the spray of water bouncing off the walls, her eyes a menacing blaze as she pointed her gaze at them. Scout scrambled up, both men backing up as they stepped through the shower room doors and back into the corridor as the door swung too and fro. She kept on walking forwards, her steps quickening as she raised a hand to pluck the knife out of the frame. With another hand, she swung the door open, her figure standing in the doorway with a hand remaining raised, her hip tilted to the side as her menacing look casted onto every single man that stood outside the door. 

Whether she knew it or not, her face began to flush as she looked at the nine men in front of her. This disheveled look was the very one she was introducing to her new team. 

She hated it. 

Utterly despised it. 

Her once flowy crimson skirt that rested right above her ankles was crumpled, crudely bunched up in a hair tie up towards the left side of her hip. her hair was disheveled in a mess of a braid where the dark chocolate strands flowed out and about as she internally cringed at the sigh of white strands in the corner of her vision. her legs were lightly sprayed with water as streaks of droplets slipped down, uncomfortable over the black covering on her right leg and arm, soaking it up as the ill fitted fabric stuck to her skin. Her cheeks were flushed, sunburnt with the line of her sunglasses evident as her wild, paranoid eyes looked at them. 

She was a mess in that moist lace top, and she knew it. 

There before her were nine men gathered from throughout the world. They were the best of the best. The most utterly insane out of the whole bunch. Each one of these men dressed the part, each one looked like it, and for being the first and perhaps only woman for this generation of mercenaries, she was greatly disappointed with her introduction, favoring the one that she had framed into her mind.

If only Yuri could see her now. 

Hunter cleared their throat as they leaned against the door, a softer look crossing their features as they examined the group in front of them. The water was rushing in the background, pitter pattering against the walls and the floor as she began to cross her arms. Her right hand, covered in it’s inky black material, waved ever so slowly and steadily at them as her crimson stained lips began to open, gapping for a moment as the words caught in her throat. 

“ _Buenos Días Caballeros._ ” 

It was silent. 

For a moment the men just looked at her as her half lidded eyes looked back to them as none of them moved. They were just looking at one another, back and forth. her eyes however drifted towards a man in the back, who’s eyes burned back at her and she couldn’t help but relax a bit as a small curve of her lip rose. His dark eyes darted back at her with an amused one as he removed the cigarette from his lips, a puff of smoke erupting from his parted lips as they flowed out, only to gently place it back again. 

“Lady! What were you thinking!? Waving that knife around like that! Ya could have hit me!”

She blinked for a moment, looking down at the silver blade tucked away in her left hand. Her head slightly shook as she looked at it, following the spark of light reflecting off of it. She looked up towards Scout again as she huffed a bit. 

“Be grateful I aimed for the door frame, and not at you _mijo_.”

With that, she straightened her posture a bit, flipping the blade between the digits of her hand as she quickly slipped it into the belt rested on the higher side of her thigh as she plucked the hair tie off in one go as the skirt fell down in crumples to her ankles again. 

“I was tempted to hit you though.”

Scout looked back at her incredulously. He straightened his posture, standing over her as he puffed out his chest and stalked forwards with a hand pointed at her and another pounding at his chest. 

“You better be thankful that that knife didn’t hit me! I’m a big deal around here and I can tell ya that would have been a terrible mistake.” He stopped right in front of her as he pushed her lightly in the shoulder. “You're out here in the battlefield and I don’t care if you're a lady, the fact that your a girl changes nothing toots, and I could easily kick your ass.” He finished with a crease in his brow and a challenge in her eyes. 

She merely blinked up at him for a moment, her eyes darting around his features as she then tilted her head. She leaned to the side, looking at the men behind him, holding exasperated looks, some with legs that jittered as they were tempted to move forwards, do something. She just smiled at them as they looked at her in surprise. 

“I possibly would have believed you if you weren’t so thin. I could easily break those twig arms of yours in a heartbeat. “ 

Her eyes casted to look right in the eyes as she leaned forwards as he leaned back. 

“You should rather be thankful I’m not beating the shit out of YOU for coming into the showers like that. What if I was actually showering, Hm? Then I’ll have a real reason to throttle you Scout.” 

He looked at her as a flame burnt in his eyes, fists by his side as his nostrils flared. The air in the corridor was thick as the tension between the two grew. Engie looked between the two as did the rest of the mercs. Even Sniper in the back pushed himself forwards away from the wall to stop the two, but Spy held his hand out before him, stopping the Australian man. 

It was quiet. 

But then there was laughter. 

She had leaned away from him as a small smile rose on her lips, a hand raising up to cover it as a full blown laugh escaped the confines of her lips. She closed her eyes, laughing as she wiped the tears away as they came. They all looked surprised, even Scout as his shoulders relaxed and his mouth was agape as he looked at her. 

“To be honest, _Mijo_ , you startled the SHIT out of me. Lord, I was planning to see you all in the dining area after cleaning Batatas but here I am, relaxing a bit to calm my nervousness and a boy comes running in slamming the doors open and yelling. Next thing I knew, I threw the knife and you fell on the floor!”

His eyes widened, his mouth a gap as he blinked, his shoulder shrugging completely as he slouched looking at her. 

“ _Mijo, perdoname,_ but your face was just priceless!”

And she laughed and laughed as she held her stomach. Scout’s face reddened the more she laughed. It was such a contagious sound as Demo laughed along with her and soon a couple more joined in. Engineer shook his head as he released a breath he didn’t know he was having and Sniper held his hat in his hand as Spy chuckled. 

She had wiped a couple more tears from her face and after composing herself she turned to look at the young man before her, his cheeks bright red and an embarrassed look in his eyes. She had leaned down, feeling the tufts of fur from Batata’s rub against her leg as she scooped him up, wrapping him nicely in her skirt as she walked forwards, passing Scout. She placed a hand right on his shoulder as she shook it lightly. 

“But I’m serious, you're so skinny, like a stick. I’m quite certain you wouldn’t be able to even get a good punch in the mix with how thin your arms are.”

As quick as his embarrassment was, his outrage came even faster as he cried out in defense. 

“You can’t tell me you don’t think these guns aren't amazing, lady! Ladies love me, they love the guns, they love the phasic, they just love me! I’m irresistible.” 

She couldn’t help but smile wider as he flexed his arm, seeing the muscle come out as she giggled a bit knowing full well his thinness had a hand at that. With a clearing of her throat, and a switching of the platypus to the other hand, she cleared her throat, raised her left arm up and tightened her fist, flexing as the muscles rose with ease. They were well defined, visible, and above all comparably larger than Scouts as he gasped in indicating. 

“I’d like to challenge that Scout.” 

An amused laugh came from the mercenaries around them as Demoman lead full force, bending over as a hand rested on his knees. 

“I’m liking this woman more and more! Ahh, lordie, lordie, she’s beating ya good!”

He stepped forwards as he passed Hunter, giving her what she could only assume was a wink from his one good eye as he wrapped his arms around Scout as a “Hey!” escaped the young boy’s lips. “What cha doing Demo-” he hit his back even harder than before, “We’re turning the water off.” 

She walked up to the first one before her who just so happened to be Heavy. His intimidating form held their arms crossed, towering over the girl as he looked down with his hardened eyes that held amusement all over them. Unpahsed, she looked right up at him with a small smile on her crimson painted lips as she held her hand out to him to shake. 

“ _Hola_! I’m Hunter, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Heavy couldn’t hold back the hardy laugh that escaped him as he shook his head, swinging his large hand out to engulf her own gently. 

“Heavy Weapons Guy, or heavy. Nice to meet new class!”

Her grip around his hand was strong despite how small it was and it amused the 6’5’’ man as he looked down at the woman. He could tell from just a glance that she was easily shorter than him, maybe even a foot and a half shorter and it heavily amused him. She held a strong grip, a mighty one for a small creature, and he enjoyed it. 

Hunter slipped her hand from Heavy’s larger one as she turned to approach the next person, only to be greeted by Soldier's chest as he marched right beside her. 

“YOU ARE A GIRL!”

She blinked as he looked right at her as silence perminated again. She tilted her head quizzically at that and then nodded back in response. 

“Yes.” 

“ARE YOU PREPARED FOR BATTLE.”

“I would like to think so.”

“THEN WHAT ARE YOU WEARING SOLDIER!? YOU LOOK LIKE A MAID, LIKE YOU CLEAN UP AROUND THE PLACE! ARE YOU TELLING ME THE 10TH CLASS IS A MAID SOLDIER?!”

“Mayhaps, but I think I’d be a rather rawful maid if that was the case. I wouldn’t even want to entrust my own things to myself.” 

Soldier looked at her, displeased as he leaned forwards, preparing to lean over her as his mouth opened again to yell something more out till he felt a pat on his shoulder and a tug. 

“Now, now, we have a couple more days just so she can settle in patner, give her some space. She’ll be battle ready in no time, ain’t that right?”

her eyes turned to look at the shortest male of the bunch as he took a step forwards, a gentle look on his face. He reached out a hand of his own as he slipped it away from Soldier's back, smiling a bit wider as he realized he was still looking down at her even with the heels that rested on her feet. “Pleasure to meet you Miss, I’m the Engineer around here. Anything you find broken, you can just bring it right up to me. You could call me Engie if you like, shortens it down a bit.” 

The corner of her mouth tilted up as a lopsided smile filled her features again. 

“Will do Engie, it’s lovely to meet you too.”

“Quake! Quake! Quake!”

She let her hand slide out as she lifted up Batatas too as he began to quake, wagging his beaver like tail. “And he says it’s lovely to meet you too.” 

“Quake!”

Engie chuckled lightly, putting a gloved finger under his chin as he scratched it a bit as Batatas leg flicked up a bit. “Ain’t he a cutie.” He said as he let go, seeing the creature look displeased as he eyed the Engineer. 

“So, what’s with the Platypus, Mate? It’s a little odd seeing the critter out of Australia.” 

Sniper walked forwards as he held a hand in his pocket, eyeing the creature through his sunglasses. Hunter smiled, cradling the little guy in her arms. 

“His names Batatas, or Yams if you will. He’s important for some of my work. You’ll see it sooner or later after all, but for now, he’s just this big idiot that likes to quake at everyone and everything passing.” 

She lifted him up towards Sniper who tentatively held his hand out towards the Platypus who lightly grabbed his finger in his beak. 

“I was gonna see all of you earlier, but you see, Batatas has been in the desert for a bit too long. First thing I did when I got here was try to hydrate him and drop him off so I could make introductions.” She huffed a bit as a nervous laugh held her mouth, “It seems like that wasn’t the case at all though.” 

The group of men shuffled around a bit as they exchanged looks. Sniper let a sound out of his throat as he looked down at her and her little platypus as he coughed a bit. “Scout, that heathen, runs faster than the bunch of us here. Sorry about that, mate.” 

She nodded at him with a gentle look. “ _Esta Bien._ ” She spoke swiftly in her native tongue as she held up the creature to the Australian a bit higher. 

“Should have stopped him sooner for a swiffer introduction, mon amie.”

She looked up, past the Australian as she saw him in the back of the group. He was walking forwards, the cigarette removed from his lips again as it was gently held between his fingers. She narrowed her eyes at him lightly, that smile so sweet on her face remained as she straightened her posture. 

“As I said before, it’s all good-”

“He would have been sent straight to respond if ya did Lassie!”

Demoman barged through the door again as Scout tagged behind him. The Scottsman swung his arms a bit as he went. 

“That blade must have been mighty sharp to have pierced through that wooden frame with such ease.” He whistled at that as he stopped, pointing at her, “Mighty clean cut that was.” He lifted his own hand out as he looked towards her. “I’m the Demolition Expert around her Lassie, and it’s nice to meet such a fine lady like yourself around here.” he said with such a shift in pitch as he grinned ear to ear. “You can call me Demo for short if ya liked.” She nodded, looking towards the Aussie again as he cleared his throat, reluctantly moving his hand away as the Platypus quaked. Turning her body towards the man, she gripped his hand firmly in a shake. The Frenchman frowned as he watched, slinking to the back of the group yet again as Sniper eyed him through his glasses. 

“It’s nice to meet you as well Demo.” 

[Platypus Noises]

She turned away from Demoman feeling something tugging at her arm as there besides her was the tower figure dressed head to toe in his asbestos-lined, fire resistant suit. She knew who it was right away. This red bathed, gas masked wearing individual was none other than the Pyro she’s heard so much about. With a look darting to her arms and ultimately to a confused Batatas, She released Demo’s grip. With careful hands she held him up and nodded towards the other person across from her. 

“He’s not too fond of being held by strangers yet,” she chimed, holding him up a bit closer, “but he’s not against belly scratches.” he clapped his hands joyously at that as he took tiny steps, reaching a gloved hand out as he poked the Platypus’ belly. Batatas rumbled again, his left foot lifting up to his belly as he began to scratch his side as Pyro rubbed his belly. The Platypus twisted as his little leg began to bat around as a purr like sound escaped him, his head nuzzling against her hand as he quaked away.

She couldn’t help but smile at the visible excitement she could catch from Pyro’s movements as he marveled at the creature in her arms. After a moment though, she began to start cooing as Batatas bit her hand, his little foot batting at Pyro’s hand as the Pyromaniac relayed his hand back. 

“Batatas.”. She said as he huffed, curling up in her hands as he hissed and bit her hand again. 

“Don’t mind him, he just doesn’t want belly rubs anymore, you spoiled brat.” she said to Batatas who let a string of angry noises escape him again. “You butt you.” 

[Angry Platypus noises]

She looked to Pyro who mumbled in a sad kind of way as she frowned a bit. “Pyro, right?” He nodded at that. “You can pet him whenever you like, he’s just had interactions with too many people today.” He nodded eagerly at that, his body bouncing as he mumbled happy noises and she couldn’t help but smile. This nature reminded her of home in a way. 

It was then that someone cleared their throats. She turned to look to Heavy’s side where another man stood where he hadn’t before. Previously, if she recalled well, he had settled himself at the edge of the group, but not the older man stood in the middle, walking towards her. She recalled his features well from his file, and with a narrow of her eyes and a tilt of her head with a small smile, she looked up at the approaching figure and his precise steps. 

“ _Hallo Frau_ , I hope your trip went well,” he began to say, gripping her hand lightly, “You may call me Doctor, or as my title goes by, The Medic.” She nodded back, lightly curling her free hand in his own. 

“ _Gracias_ , it went smoothly for what it was. Though I do have to ask, I don’t have to make an appointment ahead of time, do I?”

He grinned a bit at that, “ _Nein_ , but I expect to see you at the Medbay tomorrow.” 

Her smile faltered a bit, however it never left as she nodded up at him. “Understood, Doctor.” 

Her hand stayed in his a bit longer as the German held onto it, his eyes trailing down the discolored skin on the right side of her face, and the large gash that ran across her nose and lip. She slowly slipped her own out of his as her eyes nervously darted over him and his reassuring smile. 

Shaking her head a bit though, she looked around at the group again, smiling ever so as she did. So far it seemed like everything was going well. it wasn’t as she imagined it would be or how she intended it, but it went smoothly and that’s all that mattered to her. Smiling at everyone, to the grouchy and the amused, she couldn’t help but feel like something good would come out of all this. She just hoped her instinct was at least somewhat correct, unlike other times. 

“Welcome to the RED Team, Hunter! Now, I don’t know about any of y'all but I’m going back. Lunch is practically done at this point and I can’t wait to eat some of that good ol’ southern comfort food I made today!”

She was really hoping her instincts were right for once in her fucking life, because damn...this was great. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am sorry this chapter is longer than the previous ones combined. Man, I got carried away on this one but it is what it is in some ways though, just because of how unsure I was. I rewrote this chapter about 5 times and I’m still not sure, but I’m okay with this rendition somewhat. 
> 
> This was such an utterly terrible chapter to write. One of my biggest struggles with writing is when I have to create interactions with multiple people at once. You could a character talking to each other one at a time, but unless the situation really calls for it, that doesn’t happen. Everyone’s doing something in a large group, whether one of them decides to twiddle their thumbs, exchange a look with the person besides them, or any other interaction they can think of. There shouldn’t be a static character around and that’s why it was so difficult to write and why the chapter has been prolonged. But not it’s finished for now, and that’s the important part I would like to think. I hope the chapter wasn’t too long and I hope it wasn’t too bad to read over all. 
> 
> On another note, I actually post some of my drawings for this out and about. I usually post it on my Instagram but since I’m bringing back my dead fanfiction account up and running again, I thought I’ll bring back my deceased tumblr. I think it should be easy enough to see my drawings there if y’all are interested, but that’s up to you guys. 
> 
> Thank you for reading! Comments and criticism are very much appreciated here! I hope you all have a wonderful day!
> 
> Tumblr: wisp-in-the-willows.tumblr.com  
> Specific Flexing Image: https://wisp-in-the-willows.tumblr.com/post/611073157529583616/so-im-writing-my-story-and-then-i-couldnt-help  
> Instagram @ms.squeena_art


	4. René

“ _ Mi amor, _ you need to sleep and hopefully the feeling will go away.” She spoke lightly as she heard his low grumble. Her hand lowered towards his dark brown fur as she ran her rough hands through it, smiling as she did. 

Batatas was in his nesting box, his dark beady eyes looking up at her as he munched on some shrimp. 

She looked at him with concern as his body rumbled beneath her hand, the feeling a familiar one she hoped wouldn’t come. But she couldn’t help but smile as she lifted another gloved hand up to him, handing him yet another shrimp that he munched upon with ease. It eased her nerves a bit as she saw him look so calmly at her. He was a rowdy kid after all, and for him to be this calm should have been a blessing. 

She stood up again as she peeled the glove off her hand, walking over to her vanity as she stole a glance at him. Batatas was fine, looking at the world with those dark beady eyes. She smiled.

Batatas was fine. 

Hunter returned to her makeshift vanity, sitting down on the hard seat as she sighed, looking into the stained mirror that was placed before her. She was grateful for the makeshift vanity, to the extra stool they put in the room besides the wardrobe and the crudely hung mirror. It was great. 

After admiring the crudely made set, her eyes wandered towards the vanity, noting the little curves and the little cracks within the wood till she could memorize every crease and every turn. But then, despite her better judgement, she looked up into the mirror. her emerald eyes looked into the reflection of herself looking back at her with a filter of stained glass blocking the two apart. 

She’d love to think that her reflection in the mirror was beautiful, that she was as young and as refreshing to look at as the girl who had her whole life sketched and set out before her at the age of 18. But she felt old now, aged, as the soft pads of her left hand mixed with the uneven, marred, flesh of her right as they poked and prodded at the bags under her eyes and the scars that scattered on her face. She looked so exhausted and frail and she hated it. She could only hate so much however. 

There was only so much hate she could conjure up after all. 

The reflection of herself looking back at her burned as she couldn’t take it anymore, her eyes crinkled shut as she turned away with a creased brow. She shook her head, sighing as she thought about how her day had gone. She had sat with them, talked with them, hid the nerves and the concerns under a façade of laughter and chatter as the introductions had gone by. She had imagined that day had gone well, leaving the first day on a good note with everyone however it took a toll on her. Hunter knew how utterly draining it could be to be in such a position. To be so precise, to be so calm despite the painful pounding of a heart that couldn’t stop pounding. She used to be such a people person back in the day. 

She couldn’t help but scoff at the thought. She knew better than anyone that it was because she had to, not because she wanted to. Lord knew how much she hated people, how much she hated men. 

She couldn’t stop the cold, dry laugh that escaped her parched lips as she looked at her disheveled reflection in the stained mirror. 

Yuri would have reprimanded her the moment they were alone. Hunter never liked to be a people’s person and even now as she tried to tell herself otherwise she knew the truth. Yuri wouldn’t have liked that, not one bit. 

The silence and the solitude in her room was welcoming, but it made her think of Yuri. It made her think of how much she aged, how much time had passed her within a blink of an eye. How her reflection was a young, freshly made woman to an aged woman defined with time. It made her think about how old this whole setup was, how long it was for each step of the plan. HER plan. 

Her eyes darted to her lap as she rested her arms upon the vanity, her head falling through the loop of her arms as she breathed in and out, closing her eyes. She couldn’t be thinking of that right now. She shouldn’t be. There were more important things to consider before the restless night took hold of her. There were so many more important things to consider. 

Like how she almost hit Scout. 

She was glad and yet enraged by how bad her aim was after not being able to move her hands for so long. Lord, what would the team think if they realized that on the very first day there, she had thrown a knife right at their youngest member’s head. it wouldn’t have been the best introduction at all. The looks on their faces as she marched out, the look in their eyes. 

She was debriefed on them, she knew about them, about what they were capable of doing. A woman on the battlefield wasn’t the norm, even in the underbelly it wasn’t as usual, but it was a possibility and at this moment she was within the possibility, hoping for the best. So she did the only thing that came to mind. 

She laughed. 

She went along with it, went with the flow of reactions and emotions, pretending to take some control and claim it as her own. She wanted to turn to Scout, grab him by the shoulders and throttle him about startling her so badly. She could have done that and by the looks on their faces it would have been okay, it would have been fine. but she knew she couldn’t do that, not yet, not when HE looked at her. 

She wanted to snap at the doctor, the man who traced over her with those eyes of blue steel. She felt those eyes burn into her covered arms as he looked over every detail, every scar that was as broad as day. The heathen was searching for something. She could only imagine from his file that he was elated, a female candidate for experimentation. Perfect candidate to add into his line up of exclusively male bodied specimens.

With bated breath and a huff of pain, she lifted both fists and pounded against her vanity with half hearted hits, looking up again she looked at her wild eyes within the mirror. 

But the Doctor was a man she could perhaps get along with. She was not afraid of him. She was afraid of no one here. 

But someone else irritated her. He reminded her of something she didn’t need to be reminded of. He was like a phantom, a haunted image that returned over and over again. She knew his type well, just as she knew the Doctor’s type and the Heavy’s type. Just as she could look through the sweetness of an accent and the childishness of actions or the façade of a drunken stupor. 

The Spy though, that was a man she knew all too well.

* * *

“ _ Eres una mujer española, ¿no? _ ” (1)

Out of all the things she thought he would say as he looked at her from the back of the group with those piercing eyes, it certainly didn’t involve that. But in a way she understood, after all, you need to start a conversation somehow when you’re not sure how to approach the newfound beast. 

“ _ Et vous êtes un Français. _ ” (2)

She didn’t feel like entertaining him, not after this whole introduction, she had already dismissed the group telling everyone that she’ll meet them in the dining area after she collected the supplies she left in the showers. Hunter smiled, seeing Pyro jump at the opportunity to help her pick everything up, however she gently declined, her skin crawled as she patted a hand on his shoulder as he reached out for Batatas again. Her flesh burnt, hissed like a phantom as she told him that she’d like to do it on her own. 

And thus the group left, leaving her to clean her mind as she stayed behind with the ever lingering Spy. 

“ _ Mais je ne vois pas en quoi cela est important. Nous avons un Allemand, un Russe, un Australien et un Écossais. _ ”(3)

“ _ Pero también tenemos tres americanos. Y ahora una mujer española para rematar todo. _ ”(4)

“ _ Qué extraordinario. _ ”(5)

Hunted turned on her heel as she hummed, holding Batatas closer to her chest. With careful steps she walked back to the shower room and pushed the door open as she walked in. 

“Now, tell me my dear, what deeds does a woman need to accomplish to be sent here of all places?” Spy asked as he walked after her, his long steps carrying him as he slowly walked. Hunter had rolled her eyes, leaning down to the supplies as she placed Batatas in a bucket of new water. 

“I think you’re well aware of what type of deeds, Spy.” she said as she leaned up, holding the supplies in her right arm and the bucket in her left. Spy looked at her with those narrowed eyes through his mask as he puffed a bloom of smoke from his lips.

“Oh, but I can simply imagine with a title as clear as Manhunter.” 

She turned her dark eyes at him as he walked towards her, his body stopping right before her as he looked down at the short woman. 

“However, I’d love to know a story first hand,  _ mon amie. _ ” 

Her blank eyes gazed at him for a long moment as a blank expression covered her face. With a stoic look, she dropped the supplies and snatched the cigarette up, tossing it to the sink as she huffed.

“Wouldn’t you like to know…” 

As a grin slowly crept on her face as she leaned forwards. her voice was hushed, it was quiet yet so loud in that room as it echoed. 

“R-”

[BANG BANG]

* * *

Hunter’s body stiffened as she bolted up from her seat, sitting up straight. Her eyes darted around the room towards the door as she paused again, her movement stiff and choppy as she listened. 

[BANG BANG]

She looked around again, noting it wasn’t from the door as she turned to the farther corner of the room on the opposite wall. Within a blink and a hand rubbing over her eyes, she saw the books on the top shelf as it happened again.

[BANG BANG]

Her sigh was loud and prominent as she cried out, a hand to her chest as she pushed herself up from the seat. 

“ _ Batatas!  _ You idiot, stop doing that. You are giving me a heart attack!”

Batatas squeaked as he looped up from his place from the floor, his little feet tracking straw outside of his nesting box as he quaked again. Hunter shook her head as he looked at him, sighing in relief that it’s just the dramatic Yam that decided to make that ruckus.

She lowered her hand gently, scooping him up as he whined and made a fuss, his body shifting around as she cursed under her breath. She placed him on the bed gently as she grabbed her robe, covering herself as she scooped him up again as she huffed lightly. 

“It didn’t seem the transition helped very much. I’ll see what I can do right away, okay Batatas.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Howdy, howdy. I hope you are all doing well. I want to apologize for not updating in so long however with everything going on I have been rather busy ironically. I’ve been swamped with school work and will have finals in about two weeks till I start Summer Classes again which is great for passing the time but abhorrent for other activities. Not to mention I am also working on two video games at the moment. I’m an external collaborator for a senior project as an artist and I have a personal project as well with the addition of acting things on the side, life has been strange. 
> 
> Sadly, it feels like I have somewhat lost my call to this fanfiction as everything came around but after discovering a new TF2 video on YouTube the other day, it sparked enough joy to encourage me to write again. Hopefully with finals and things lightening up I will be able to update regularly again. This story is merely difficult in the aspect that the character was developed with “Expiration Date” in mind as their starting point so if things jumble around, it’s probably because I’m trying to fill that all in. I hope you all like this chapter and the story thus far and for those still reading it, I appreciate you all greatly and immensely for liking my writing, or at least tolerating it enough for the story. So thank you. This chapter was different from the rest and I attempted to rewrite it several times however this is what just kept on happening. It will be on track with the next chapter. After this I will be writing chapters in masses so hopefully I will always have an idea of what to write and to provide somewhat regular content. 
> 
> Thank you for reading! Comments and criticism are very much appreciated here! I hope you all have a wonderful day!
> 
> Translations:  
> 1: You’re a Spanish woman, aren’t you?  
> 2: And you are a French man.  
> 3: But, I do not see why that matters. We have a German, a Russian, an Australian, and a Scotsman.   
> 4: But we also have three Americans. And now a Spanish woman to top it off.  
> 5: How Extraordinary


	5. Medicinal Woman: Part One

Hunter was more than thankful to know that Helen had gifted them some extra time due to her arrival (although she was quite aware that it was because of several more pressing matters than just relaxation). If it wasn’t for that gracious gift, Hunter would have been utterly distraught. She could imagine her clothing creased and an utter mess no matter how many times she would try to fix it, dark circles even more prominent than before as she would sluggishly walk towards the battlefield as she held in a yawn with eyes ablaze. It was a doable feat that she knew all too well, however it would mean her performance all depended on the adrenaline pumping through her veins.

Above all else however, Hunter hadn’t gone without sleep for that long in over a year and to her displeasure she was quite certain that she wouldn’t ever be capable of functioning like that again. 

Last night, Hunter had wandered down the halls in a rush as she slipped her  _ chanclas _ on as the silky crimson robe fluttered behind her. Her eyes darted back and forth down the dark halls as she tried to remember the layout. Miss Pauling hadn’t shown her the whole building due to time restraints and thus she was merely familiarized with the Cafeteria, the Infirmary, and the Bedrooms.

But Hunter had an idea, a solid idea from years ago that she remembered more or less from a distant past. She closed her eyes for a second, her head tilted too and fro as she recalled what little she recalled as she heard his little quacks resounding down the hall as it shook her in place. 

There was no time to think, no time to be uncertain of where she was as her small little Batatas was in danger. she had a faint idea of where it could be and with rushed steps she zoomed away. She needed a garage, a cargo bay, somewhere where her supplies could have been shipped and delivered to. 

She hissed lightly, feeling his small body thrash about as it got worse. She began to curse under her breath in her native tongue as her sets grew louder, her breath thicker and quicker as those eyes darted back and forth. She needed to get to her supplies quickly and she needed to get to it now. 

Her steps grew quieter as her eyes locked onto the faint yellow glow that casted down the hall, her breath hitching in her through for a second. She cursed again as she took quick tiny steps as she hushed Batatas, She had nearly crossed when Batata’s released a loud resounding Quack that repeated over and over again as her brows creased and her shoulders rose. 

_ “Querida, por favor, ya casi llegamos, sólo un poco más-”  _ (1)

“Hunter?” 

Her limbs froze, her shoulders locked as her head quickly darted to the side as the hair whipped behind her back as a hand quickly reached for her thigh as those wild eyes darted towards the voice that appeared out of nowhere. 

He was there, peeking through the door with a stiff, rigid body at the sight of her hand, tracing the outline of something vile. He shuffled for a moment, his eyes narrowed as he stood up taller. Her eyes took a moment to register him, took a moment to realize his coat was missing, his sleeves were rolled up, and his tired steel eyes, those deep cool blue steel eyes, were staring right at her. 

Her shoulders began to lower again, her eyes slowly falling back into a steady gaze as her chest heaved after a while to a slower pace as their eyes locked upon one another. His steel blue eyes were piercing into her very soul. 

“It’s very late Hunter, I didn’t expect you to be exploring so soon with how exhausted you were when we parted ways.” 

Her eyes broke away from him, looking to the ground and towards the thrashing bundle in her arms. The same bundle that has caught his attention as he readjusted his glasses, brows narrowed as it began to click in his head. 

“ _ Doctor _ , do you know where the rest of my equipment is? I need it now.” 

He swung the infirmary doors forwards as he marched through, the doors clicking and slamming behind him as he rushed forwards on long legs as his eyes sparkled in the dim light. “Ja, we left it to the side of the cargo bay.” he addressed as he quickly walked past her towards the direction she was walking 

“Right this way  _ Jägerin(2),  _ it looks like we don’t have much time.” 

Her mouth opened a bit as she quickly walked to match his pace. it took her a moment to close it as she sighed. She straightened up as she felt him thrash about again after his pause, her eyes darting to him as agitated quacks escaped the little creatures throat as she began to pick up speed, jogging a bit. Medic had been turning his head ever so and upon seeing her gain speed he did as well, turning here and turning elsewhere again as he climbed down a small set of stairs towards the side where he quickly pushed the door open as he rushed down the stairs into the Cargo Bay. 

He had quickly ran to the side as Hunter gracefully ran down the stairs and rushed to the work table besides the stairs as she gently placed him down as she turned to the sides. The Medic grabbed a crowbar from the side as he walked forwards, steel blue eyes turning to look at her. 

“Which one do you need open?”   


“I don’t know, all of them.”

Medic looked towards one of several crates that were left to their side, all marked with the insignia of the new member as he rushed towards the closest one. She grabbed another one by the workbench as she rushed to her own as she pulled the top off. Her arms struggled for a moment, a soft breathy cry escaping her lips as the burning feeling erupted from her limb as she hissed, pushing through it as it popped open on one side as she shuffled to another, bursting the top off. With careful, shaking limbs she leaned over the crate, almost forgetting about the nails and the rough pieces of wood as she leaned down, hands shuffling as she looked for a certain item in mind only for her to rush over to the next one. 

Medic’s eyes wandered towards her form, wandered towards the frantic movements, the agitated ones as he popped yet another one with ease. With a huff she had turned around and rushed towards the Medic’s side as she checked the first box.

Nothing was there.

She hissed again, going to the next ones as her hands dug out and about. She was about to jump back till her eyes caught the soft glow she was looking for and with a quick huff she leaned forwards even more. The violet glow she was all too familiar with made its presence known as it floated, illuminating the creature even brighter as if it knew. She leaned further down as her fingers curled around it as she pushed herself back, lifting a bright glowing bottle. 

She turned and rushed over towards the workbench as blue steel eyes followed her. His eyes darted towards the crates once more as he looked back at her jittery form. He placed the crowbar down the side as he rubbed his hands, looking at her as he adjusted his glasses again. She had hopped onto the workbench as she placed the bottle down. Her fingers lowered slowly as they lightly put pressure on him, her arm pushing down over a bundle of blanket as she held him in place. They poked and prodded, lightly applying pressure as she found the right junction. 

She opened her mouth, her eyes darting up to look at the Medic only to find him missing, her body stiffened again till she heard a slight hum to her side as he lifted up a lightly soaked cotton ball which she graciously took it, softly pressing it against the junction as she rubbed it in. 

“What is happening to him?” 

Hunter sighed a bit, her eyes trained on the Medic for a second as she lowered down to grab the syringe from his hands as she uncorked the vial as she filled it. With careful movements she managed to hold him down just right as she slowly and carefully lowered the needle towards the junction. 

He quacked loudly. A whine escaping him as his body began to thrash around even more as she hissed, applying a gradual build of pressure over him in hopes of keeping him down however her arm was shaking and she couldn’t quite keep him still. Medic’s hands slipped through the loop she had as she stiffened, startled as she removed the needle only to his hands grasping to sides of the bundle that held him in place as he held a sturdy hand. With no more time to wait, she did it again as his body began to thrash less and less as more of the substance entered his body. 

Medic simply watched, his cold steel eyes looking over his body and at the Hunter with her wet eyes. 

“Sniper was right, it’s rare to see a platypus outside of Australia and this is a reason for that.” 

His eyes trailed over her, over her features, over the small bundle he held firmly in his grasp. 

“They are highly sensitive towards changes in their environment which make them virtually impossible to transport out of the country. To move them out could very well be a death sentence. However they are imperative towards my work. And as a result..”

“You developed a method to keep them alive.” 

He was slightly unnerved to see those emerald eyes so hardened, so harsh as they glazed over him. He could feel the burn as his grip began to lesson on the small creature. His thrashing had subsided as he simply rumbled away, his eyes closed as he laid there in her embrace. 

“Precisely.” 

Perhaps it was the smile that softly accompanied the harsh look, perhaps it was the way her eyes crinkled that one did not match up with the other, however he wasn’t phased, not one bit as he adjusted his glasses, eyes darting towards the bottle again. He took a long step towards it, his hand slowly reaching out for it as he lifted it up. His eyes narrowed as he saw the swirls curl around within the vial, his face came closer as they examined every little piece of it. He lifted a hand and with a pause he wafted it towards his direction as he closed his eyes. A wave of relief and relaxation floated over him as the scent of herbs and a floral mix attacked his senses. He had to quickly lean forwards, almost dropping it as a wave of lightheadedness washed over him. His arms quickly reached for the table however he couldn’t see, his perception skewed as he missed. His body froze, stiff as the feeling of falling washed over him as he stopped, eyes looking towards the ground no longer looking towards him as the haze slowly began to muffle away. 

He couldn’t even feel her tight grip on his arm, holding him up as her fingers began to curl around the vial that almost slipped from his. 

His mouth opened his mouth but nothing more than a sigh escaped him as his eyes were wide. Everything felt slow, everything felt wrong. 

“It’s a relaxer of sorts however it can do other things depending on what you do. It can be used for many different purposes and in the case of Batatas,” she began to say as she lifted the needled and moved it to a different side, “the concentrate itself is what helps his seizures go away.” 

Her words whispered after that as she allowed the rest of the substance to enter his system as she capped it and placed it to the side, softly climbing down the workbench as her dress rose up ever so. 

“Medic.” 

His eyes were still hazy however they turned to look at her as this purple glow seemingly emanated from her for a moment. His body couldn’t resist her soft hands, those soft digits working towards his jaw as they softly pushed up from underneath as he felt her finger against what he assumed was his pulse. His knees felt like giving in but with her hands there felt like he was weightless all of a sudden, as if he needed to stand there and somehow he did, somehow the weight felt gone and far away as they rolled ever so softly against the skin there. With a careful rub of his jaw on both sides, one hand lowered towards the bench towards the other vial that she dug out, the light green glow as she softly placed a small bit in her hands as she rubbed it into her fingers and began to roll it underneath his neck again.

Quickly rolling it against his jaw again, his airway opened up, clear and sharper than anything as they rose towards the sides of his head, upon his jaws as the purple jaw evaporated. His body gained feeling again, his limbs felt warm. 

“You could have died if you smelt too much of the concentrate.” 

Those blue steel eyes could only register the vial that he could see over her head as he felt that pressure on his body again, her soft hands and that knotted flesh. 

“You should be more careful…”

Her hands slowly retreated as she looked up at him again. 

“Be grateful that you are a handsome man,  _ Doctor. _ ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have recently learned that you do not spell quack as quake so every time I have written quake thus far, it was for the world quack, as in the sound a bird makes. This happened after I told my brother about Batatas as I read him a small excerpt and he looked at me for a moment and then back onto the screen as he proceeded to say, “Dear Sister….that is quake. You have been telling everyone that he is constantly having a seizure.” I mean, he’s not wrong but that certainly wasn’t my intention. To be quite honest I find it funny so I’m gonna keep it but I’m going to keep in mind how they are spelt for the rest of this story, or in general. Usually I edit and read my own work however I do not tend to be very good at editing so that might be a problem so I apologize for my large plethora of errors within the story. 
> 
> This chapter was also going to be entirely different and not involve Medic but I got sleepy and for some reason Medic is there. So ye. Since this is a two part chapter, I will try to turn in the second part as soon as I can. 
> 
> Thank you for reading! Comments and criticism are very much appreciated here! I hope you all have a wonderful day!
> 
> 1: Darling, please, we're almost there, just a little bit more…  
> 2: This word means Hunter or Huntress more or less

**Author's Note:**

> A TF2 Fanfiction. Yes. Now the weird part about writing this whole concept and just this whole idea is the utter fact that I’ve never played TF2. Blasphemy really. I discovered TF2 years ago due to the “Meet the Medic” short and I’ve been fascinated with everything since then. When I first discovered it, I created an OC, created so many things, and I loved it, but as time passed I forgot. As a girl back home, I wasn’t really allowed to play video games, not like my brothers anyways, so I could never really consider playing the game. Even then, online games make me nervous and thus it never amounted to anything. Years later as I discover my old fan fiction and my old drawings, I remember how much I loved it and now I thought, maybe I should really give it a try. I downloaded the game, still too nervous to play it, but prepared to do stuff in order to actually make a nice story. 
> 
> I was really inspired to write this fanfiction however because I came across a story called “This Is Where We Are Now” and it’s incredible. I found it originally on Archive of Our Own and then again on Fanfiction.net and I just love it. The Author is PurpleCompromise and I have to say, I read the whole thing up to this point a couple of days again and seeing as it was recently updated (2020-01-12) I was inspired and encouraged to write my own something something.
> 
> As a result of my inexperience with TF2 and even fanfiction in general, I encourage and beg that you please provide your opinions, good or bad. Criticism is what helps an author grow and improve in their fields and I would be grateful to hear anything you guys had to say. Thank you.


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